Les Gilats

The Eco-domaine called Les Gilats will host the French Vipassana summer retreat in August 2013. This is a very large house located in the countryside, in a beautiful setting South-east and about 1h30 drive from Paris.

Everyone is welcome to join the retreat whether or not you have already practiced meditation before, this type of meditation or any type of meditation.

Enjoy the rare opportunity of an intensive meditation practice supported by daily individual interview

In order to make the most of their practice time, all meditators are accompanied by a teacher whom they will meet once a day for an interview where questions can be answered and the practice monitored.
All meditation practice instructions are thus tailored to best meet every individual’s situation and conditions. This is a truly exceptional opportunity to rapidly progress on the path of insight and wisdom.
Beginners’ retreat is called basic course, its duration is 13 days. For those who have already done their basic course at either of the retreat centers related to Chom Tong Monastery, the retreat duration is 10 days.

Summer 2013 retreat teachers

We are very happy that both Khun Thanat and Khun Kathryn Chindaporn, accepted our invitation to teach this retreat in 2013. They have been long time disciples of Venerable Phra Dhammamangalajarn (Ajarn Tong Sirimangalo) and since 1988 have been teaching Satipattana Vipassana following Mahasi Sayadaw’s tradition.

Khun Thanat and Khun Kathryn have been close to Ajahn Tong for almost 30 years and have founded the Meditaiton International Centre within Wat Phradhatu Sri Chomtong Voravihara, near Chiang Mai in northern Thailand. In addition to teaching retreats all year long in Thailand they teach regularly abroad, especially in Canada, the US, Mexico, Colombia, Puerto Rico, Germany, France, Israel, India and Russia. For their dedication to the practice and to the teaching of the dharma they have both received highly honorific awards.

To know more about them, please check their website at www.northernvipassana.org/about.html.

The retreat – practical information

When and where

Dates : August 1st to August 13th 2013
Location: the house is called Eco-domaine Les Gilats, this is a wonderful large house set in a very large park in the country side. This area of France is called Bourgogne and is situated roughly south-east of Paris. It’s about 1:30 drive from Paris. You can also get there by train, the nearest train station is Joigny, about 25 kilometers from the house.
Should you need any help with your whereabouts, trains or whatever please let us know and we’ll do our best to help you get there.
To check on trains’ timetable, please check the national train service company’s website.
Should you come by car, please let us know as some people may want to join you and share the costs.

Food and lodging

Accommodation is on a single ou double occupancy basis, depending on availabilities. in any case rooms are very spacious and comfortable.
Meals are vegetarian and preferably prepared with locally grown organic products.

What to bring with you

• a zafu or meditation cushion, we will not have any on site.
• a mat to put your cushion on (yoga mat or anything alike, doesn’t need to be over about 1 square meter in size).
• towels (bedding is supplied).

Costs

Following the south-east asian tradition, teachings are given on a dana (generosity) basis, they are not sold by the teachers but shared by them. There is no fixed price set for attending a retreat. It must be stated though that teachers rely solely on dana given by meditators for their living and have no other sources of income.

Food is also on a dana basis.

Because we have to pay a fixed rent for the accommodation, rooms come with a fixed price :

• 330 euros for 10 day retreat
• 429 euros for 13 day retreat

Accommodation has to be paid in advance. You may pay by money transfer, paypal (although then there is a small additional charge to cover for Paypal’s fees) or any other means at your convenience. Please get in touch with us on this.
If you’re doing the 10 day retreat but would like to enjoy a couple more days on site, you’re most welcome to do so. Please let us know in advance if possible, fees will be adjusted accordingly.

To sum it up:

• Teaching: dana
• Food: dana
• Accommodation: 300 or 429 euros depending on which retreat you attend
• Costs of transportation for the teachers: dana

Please note that dana paid on site must be paid in cash.

Registration

To register for the retreat, simply download the registration form here, send us a copy via email and let us know your details regarding your traveling arrangements.